House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of Calif., signs H.J. Res 46, a disapproval resolution that blocks President Trump’s National Emergency declaration, on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, March 14, 2019. However, the resolution is expected to be vetoed by President Donald Trump. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)WASHINGTON — In a stunning rebuke, a dozen defecting Republicans joined Senate Democrats to block the national…
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – The 2019 legislative session is drawing to a close. Lawmakers have debated bills calling for the legalization of industrial hemp, free speech on college campuses, funding for nursing homes, and many more. Democratic Party Executive Director Sam Parkinson and GOP Finance Director Dave Roetman discussed where various bills currently sit, how they think things might pan…
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – Governor Kristi Noem has been vocal about her top priorities for South Dakota these next four years. On Feb. 28, during her 2019 Priority Tour in Sioux Falls, she gave residents a chance to talk with her directly. They voiced their concerns and shared with her their own priorities for South Dakota. During the open forum folks…
SOUTH DAKOTA-The legalization of industrial hemp in South Dakota has been a hot-button issue this legislative session. Governor Kristi Noem has expressed her opposition to the growing of hemp. She says the state “isn’t ready” for it yet. She has public safety concerns saying hemp looks like marijuana and officials don’t have a roadside test to measure THC levels. Representative…
SIOUX FALLS, S.D.-It’s already been a busy year in Washington and Congressman Dusty Johnson has been there for it all, while trying to settle into his new role as South Dakota’s US Representative. KDLT’s Miranda Paige caught up with him to see how the new job is going. It’s important to Representative Dusty Johnson that he visits South Dakota. “This…
Vehicle bills, or bills without any meaningful content, are introduced each year in the state legislature, so seeing some in the annual line-up is not out of the ordinary in Pierre. But are there more this year than usual? And what might be behind what is essentially considered, common practice? Former Democratic state legislator, Dan Ahlers and South Dakota GOP…
SIOUX FALLS, S.D.-Bills and proposals dealing with hot-button issues are brewing in the South Dakota State Capitol. Before any of them become law, some voters got to weigh in over a cup of coffee with their representatives. Many voters made their voices heard in Sioux Falls on topics such as making early education more widely available. Haley Hoium is a…
SIOUX FALLS S.D.- South Dakota lawmakers are considering a measure to address an “early learning” gap that might be affecting kids. Robin Mediger is a kindergarten teacher who has taught at John Harris Elementary for 22 years. She says there are many benefits for students who attend preschool. “They have a big math base, they have literacy foundation and they…
There are a lot of bills in this year’s legislature that the Democratic Party and GOP have not been all that far apart on. There is a need, legislators know, to come together on issues like the nursing home crisis, transparency in government, the meth epidemic, and more. But there are a few bills coming up this week in Pierre…
LAKE GENEVA, Wis. – A Minnesota team won’t be at the U.S. National Snow Sculpting Championship this week after two of its proposed pieces – including one depicting President Donald Trump – were denied due to political overtones. The team – Dusty Thune, Kelly Thune and David Aichinger – had created a snow sculpture depicting Trump last year at the…
FILE – In this Jan. 19, 2016 file photo, handguns are displayed at the Smith & Wesson booth at the Shooting, Hunting and Outdoor Trade Show in Las Vegas. When gunmakers and dealers gather this week in Las Vegas for the industry’s largest annual conference, they will be grappling with slumping sales and a shift in politics that many didn’t…
WASHINGTON – The Republican Party believes it finally has its answer to the Democratic fundraising behemoth ActBlue. GOP groups are lending their support to a new donor platform called Patriot Pass, which they say will help the party match and even surpass the organization that sent more than $700 million to Democratic campaigns in 2018. After the Republican Party’s midterm…
Legislators are back in Pierre for the 2019 Legislative Session and Tuesday’s State of the State is the first of several big speeches to come. Wednesday is the State of the Judiciary and Thursday, the State of the Tribes. Lawmakers will just begin to look at some of the bills before them – including presumptive probation, nursing home funding, a…
PIERRE, S.D.- Saturday, March 5th marked the 2019 South Dakota Inauguration at the state capitol in Pierre. South Dakota lawmakers and leaders were sworn into office but the main event was to welcome in the new governor. Thousands of people gathered at the state capitol to witness history. Kristi Noem was sworn in as the 33rd governor of the State…
SIOUX FALLS, S.D.-On Friday Senator John Thune was in Sioux Falls to talk about the federal farm bill that was just passed by Congress. He met with some of the agricultural organizations that had a lot of input in shaping the bill in the first place. Senator Thune thanked several AG organizations from corn growers to dairy farmers for their…
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump says chief of staff John Kelly will leave his job at the end of the year. Trump isn’t saying immediately who will replace Kelly, a retired Marine general who has served as chief of staff since July 2017. But the president says an announcement about a replacement will be coming in the next day…
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – A Sioux Falls political science professor is calling it “the wave of the woman.” A record number of women are breaking a glass ceiling and running for office. We know you’ll find more women on the ballot, but are the odds stacked against these political pioneers? According Augustana University political science professor Emily Wanless, the…
SIOUX FALLS, S.D.- George Hendrickson spent years appealing to the South Dakota State Legislature. After feeling like his concerns weren’t being heard, he decided to run for U.S. House and be the voice for South Dakota. Hendrickson has worn many hats. He was a police officer, owned his own construction business and was an insurance agent. Now he owns his…
MOUNT VERNON, S.D. – Ron Wieczorek knows how to work hard. The oldest of seven children he learned at a young age what it means to fight for, and take care of, the things he loves. “We owned a dairy barn down there when I was born. When I was twelve years old my father lost his leg in a…
SIOUX FALLS, SD – Business and community leaders in Sioux Falls learned where the major party candidates for governor stand on important issues at a Downtown Sioux Falls Rotary event Monday. In the final debate between Republican Congresswoman Kristi Noem and Democratic State Senator Billie Sutton, the candidates covered a wide variety of topics, from education to agriculture, taxes and…
